Women’s Writing: A Celebration

Established in 1996 in the United Kingdom, The Orange Prize for
Fiction “celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in
women's writing from throughout the world.” Below are some of the titles
that appeared on the 2012 long list of nominated books. Our All Fairfax
Reads selection, The Submission by Amy Waldman, made the list. The
winner, announced in May, was The Song of Achilles by Madeline
Miller. For more information about the award see http://www.orangeprize.co.uk/.

Foreign Bodies by Cynthia Ozick FIC OZI
A tyrannical businessman thinks his son is wasting his life and charges
his sister with traveling to Paris to bring him home.

Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan FIC EDU
Trumpet player Hieronymus Falk is arrested in Paris and years pass
before the truth about what really happened is told.

The Sealed Letterby Emma Donoghue FIC
DON
A manipulative friend reenters Emily’s life and threatens to destroy
everything she has achieved and tried to accomplish.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller FIC
MIL
A young boy is sent to the court of King Peleus where friendship with
the king’s son determines his future path.

The Submission by Amy Waldman FIC WAL
After lengthy deliberation, the winner of a contest to design a 9/11
memorial is chosen, but the selection ignites a storm of
controversy.

There But for The
: A Novel by Ali Smith FIC SMI
A guest at a dinner party walks upstairs and locks himself in the spare
bedroom; now his hostess must find the one person who can coax him out.

Tides of War by S. K. Tillyard FIC TIL
The effects of the Napoleonic Peninsular War are seen through the eyes
of the men who went off to fight and the women left behind to deal with
life on their own.

The Translation of the Bones by Francesca Kay FIC
KAY
A woman is convinced she has seen a miracle at the Church of the Sacred
Heart; the resulting turmoil changes the lives of the church’s
parishioners forever.